Three Flavours Cornetto
Anthology of British comedic genre films linked by Cornetto references.
The Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy—also called the Cornetto trilogy or the Blood and Ice Cream trilogy—is a series of three British comedy genre films. Edgar Wright directed them, Wright and Simon Pegg wrote them, and Nira Park produced them. Pegg and Nick Frost star in all three, joined by other actors like Bill Nighy, Rafe Spall, and Martin Freeman. The films are *Shaun of the Dead* (2004), *Hot Fuzz* (2007), and *The World's End* (2013).
The trilogy does not share a single storyline. Its name comes from repeated, brief mentions of Cornetto ice cream cones across the films. Made for a combined $38 million, the movies earned $156 million worldwide and received strong critical reviews. Besides the Cornetto references, the plots also share themes of romance and struggles with maturity. The title nods to Krzysztof Kieślowski’s *Three Colours* trilogy (1993–1994).
*Shaun of the Dead* (2004) is a zombie comedy, which the filmmakers called a "rom-zom-com." Pegg plays Shaun, a man trying to get his life together while dealing with his girlfriend, mother, and stepfather during a zombie outbreak. The Cornetto reference starts when Shaun buys a cone for his hungover friend Ed (Frost) at Ed’s request. Wright has said he used Cornettos as a hangover cure himself.
*Hot Fuzz* (2007) is a buddy cop action comedy. Pegg and Frost play police officers investigating strange deaths in a quiet English village. Frost’s character Danny grew up there; Pegg’s Nicholas Angel is a London outsider. The two buy Cornetto cones at a corner shop, and later a wrapper scrap falls on a counter when Angel buys something at a motorway service station.
*The World’s End* (2013) is an apocalyptic science fiction comedy. Pegg leads a group of friends trying to complete a pub crawl from their youth, only to discover aliens have taken over their hometown. In the final scene, a Cornetto wrapper blows past and catches on a wire fence. Wright told *Entertainment Weekly* that they thought it would be funny to make a sci-fi film where even the would-be saviours are drunk.
The trilogy’s name started as a joke during *Hot Fuzz* promotion. Wright included a Cornetto as a hangover cure for Frost’s character in *Shaun of the Dead*, based on his own experience. At the film’s after-party, they got free Cornettos, so Wright and Pegg added another reference in *Hot Fuzz* hoping for more free ice cream. Duri
- field
- Film
- known_for
- British comedic genre films with repeated Cornetto ice cream references
- films
- Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, The World's End
- combined_budget
- $38 million
- combined_box_office
- $156 million
Lore & Background
The trilogy does not share a storyline, and is named after its repeated passing references to Cornetto ice cream cones. The name also references the French Three Colours trilogy by director Krzysztof Kieślowski. The name originates from a 'silly joke' during the promotion of Hot Fuzz. Wright had written in Cornetto ice cream as a hangover cure for Frost's character in Shaun of the Dead, based on his own experiences. At the after party for the film, they received free Cornetto ice creams so Wright and Pegg decided to include another reference in their next film in a failed attempt to get more free ice cream. On the promotional tour of Hot Fuzz during production of The World's End, one interviewer pointed out the use of Cornetto in the first two films, and Wright jokingly said that they represent a trilogy comparable to Kieślowski's Three Colours.
Each film is connected to a specific Cornetto flavour: Shaun of the Dead features a red strawberry-flavoured Cornetto, signifying bloody and gory elements; Hot Fuzz includes the blue original Cornetto, signifying the police element; and The World's End features the green mint chocolate chip flavour (shown only by a wrapper caught in the wind), representing 'little green men' and science fiction. Wright considered each film a 'Trojan horse', genre films that have a relationship comedy smuggled inside a zombie movie, a cop movie and a sci-fi movie. Thematically, Wright saw common themes of 'the individuals in a collective... about growing up and... about the dangers of perpetual adolescence'.
Reader's Guide
The Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy is significant as a cohesive anthology of British genre comedies that blend horror, action, and science fiction with relationship comedy and themes of maturity. Produced on a combined budget of $38 million, the films grossed $156 million worldwide and garnered critical praise. The trilogy's legacy includes its distinctive use of a recurring ice cream brand reference as a unifying motif, inspired by a joke that became a marketing and thematic device. Wright, Pegg, and Frost, along with a recurring cast including Bill Nighy, Rafe Spall, and Martin Freeman, created a body of work that is often cited for its clever genre subversion and consistent thematic exploration of growing up and collective identity. The films also feature a running gag involving garden fences and are linked by a common set of actors who appeared in each installment.
Did You Know?
- The trilogy name is a reference to the French Three Colours trilogy by director Krzysztof Kieślowski.
- Each film features a different Cornetto flavour: strawberry in Shaun of the Dead, blue original in Hot Fuzz, and green mint chocolate chip in The World's End.
- The Cornetto references began as a joke to get free ice cream from the manufacturer Wall's.
- Director Edgar Wright used Cornettos as a hangover cure, which inspired the first reference in Shaun of the Dead.
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